Triple-valve-testing rack.



PATBNTED OCT. 18,1904.

A. G. SANDBERG.

TRIPLE VALVE TESTING RACK.

APPLICATION FILED MAR. 5, 1904.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 1- N0 MODEL.

Masses No. 772,378. PATENTED OCT. 18, 1904.

' I A. G.. SA NDBERG.

TRIPLE VALVE TESTING RACK.

APPLICATION FILED MB. 5, 1904.

N0 MODEL. 2 SHEETS-SHEET z.

Patented October 18, 1904:.

PATENT OFFICE.

ANDREW Gr. SANDBERG, OF ST. PAUL, MINNESOTA.

T-RlPLE-VALVE-TESTING RACK- SPECIFIGATION forming part of Letters PatentNo. 7 72,378, dated October 18, 1904. Application filed March 5, 1904.Serial No. 196,644- (No model.)

To all w/wm it may concern..-

Be it known that I, ANDREW G. SANDBERG, a citizen of the United States,residing at St. Paul, in the county of Ramsey and State of Minnesota,have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Triple -ValveTesting Racks; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full,clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enableothers skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use thesame.

My invention has for its object to provide a simple, efficient, andquickly-acting clamping device for clamping triple valves totesting-racks and for coupling thereto the air-supply hose or'tube.

To the above ends the invention consists of the novel devices andcombinations of devices hereinafter described, and defined in theclaims.

Hitherto it has been customary to test triple valves of air-brakesystems in the shop in connection with testing-racks involving anauxiliary reservoir, brake-motor, and cooperating parts. The commonpractice has been to connect a triple valve to the auxiliary reservoirof the testing-rack by means of nuts and bolts and to connect theair-supply pipe or hose to the receiving-neck of the triple valve by asuitable coupling. These operations have consumed a very considerabletime and are not always satisfactorily accomplished by these olddevices.

. By means of my improved clamping device I very quickly andsimultaneously clamp the triple valve to the auxiliary reservior of therack and couple the air-hose to the receivingneck of the triple valve.

The invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawings, wherein likecharacters indicate like parts throughout the several views.

Figure 1 is a view in side elevation with some parts broken away andwith some parts sectioned, showing a triple Valve clamped to theauxiliary reservoir of the rack and connected with the air-supply hoseby my improved clamping device. Fig. 2 is a quite similar view to Fig.1,- but illustrates different positions of the parts; and Fig. 3 is atransverse vertical section taken approximately on the line 00 of Fig.2.

The numeral 1 indicates the floor or other base-support for the rack,from which an auxiliary reservoir 2 and a connected brakecylinder 3 aresupported by a pair of standards 4:.

The numeral 5 indicates an ordinary triple valve having a receiving-neck6 at its lower portion and having at one end a flange 7 the face ofwhich when the triple valve is coupled to the auxiliary reservoirengages and closely fits a projecting end portion 8 of the saidreservoir.

The numeral 9 indicates a vertically-disposed spring bar or standardwhich is secured at its lower endto the base-support 1 and is providedwith a forwardly-projecting clamping-arm 10. A hose-coupling 11 projectsthrough and is secured to the free end of the clampingarm 10. Theair-supply hose 12 is permanently attached to theoutwardlyprojecting'end of the coupling 11, and the said coupling at itsinwardly-projecting end is formed with a nozzle 13, which is adapted tofit with an air-tight joint into the receivingneck 6 of the triplevalve.

Normally the spring-standard 9 and its arm stand as shown in Fig. 2, inwhich position the nozzle 13, it will be noted, stands out of engagementwith the receiving-neck of the triple valve. The said standard and armtherefore afford an oscillating support for the nozzle or hose-couplingiThe numeral 14 indicates a pronged lever, the prongs of which arepivoted at 15 to the sides of the auxiliary reservoir 2. The prongs ofsaid lever 14 at their upper free ends are connected links 16 to atransversely-extended clamping-bar 17, which bar is adapted to engagethe upper portion of the triplevalve flange 7 in a manner illustrated inFig. 1 and hereinafter more fully described. Nuts 18 on the ends of thelinks or rods 16 afford means for adjusting the clamping-bar on the saidclamping-rods.

A crank-shaft 19 is mountedin bearings 20 on the upper end of thespring-standard 9 and is provided with a crank 21, which works betweensaid bearings and through a slot 22,

cut in the said standard. At one projecting end the crank-shaft 19 isprovided with a lever 23, by means of which it may be readily moved, andit is also provided with a camlug 24; for a purpose which will presentlyappear.

A pair of rods 25, which extend on opposite sides of the lower portionof the positioned triple valve, connect the upper ends of thespring-standard 9 and spring-arm 10, said rods being provided at theirends with nuts 26. A swiveled block 27 connects the lower ends of themembers which make up the forked lever 14. A plunger or crank-rod 28,pivoted at one end on the crank 21, works through the block 27 and atits projecting end is provided with a nut 29. A coiledcompression-spring 30 on the projecting. end of the rod 28, compressedbetween the block 27 and the nut 29, yieldingly draws said rod to itslimit through the said block.

Pivoted at its intermediate portion to one side of the forward standardt is a lever 31,

which at its rear end is connected by a link 32 to the intermediateportion of one of the clamping-rods 16. The free forward end of thislever 31 is normally engaged by the camlug 24 of the crank-shaft 19.

What will betreated as the normal positions of the parts of the clampingdevice are illustrated in Fig. 2. Normally therefore it will be seenthat the cam-lug 24, acting on the lever 31 and through the link 32,holds the clamping-bar 17 raised out of the way of the valve, and thespring-arm 10 holds the hose-nozzle 13 out of engagement with the neck 6ofthe triple valve, so that the said triple valve may be freely placedin working position or removed therefrom. The triple valve being placedin working position, as shown in Fig. 2, the lever 23 is thrown upward,as shown in Fig. 1. This upward movement of the lever first carries thecam-lug out of action on the lever 31, and thus causes the clamping-bar17 to be lowered into position to engage the upper portion of thetriple-valve flange 7. The continued upward movement of said leverthrows the crank 21 of the shaft 19 slightly upward of or beyond itsdead-center with respect to the crank-rod 28. This movement of the saidcrank very materially compresses the spring 30 on the crank-rod 28 anddraws the spring-arm 10 toward the triple valve, thereby forcing thenozzle 13 into tight engagement with the neck 6 of said triple valve.Other wise stated, the said movement of the crank tends to shorten, anddoes, in fact, shorten, the distance between the free end of the arm 10and the lower end of the lever 1 1, and the base of reaction in the oneinstance is against the nozzle 13 and in the other is against theclampingbar 17. Thus the entire clamping force is applied to clamp thetriple valve to the auxiliary reservoir and the said nozzle 13 to theneck of the triple valve. This force may be varied considerably byadjustments of the tension of the spring 30. It will thus be seen thatby a single movement of an operating-lever the triple valve is clampedin working position on the rack and is coupled to the air-supply hose.It of course follows that the valve is disconnected from the rack by areverse movement of said operating-lever.

From what has been said it will of course be understood that the devicedescribed is capable of a great many modifications within the scope ofmy invention as herein set forth and claimed.

What I claim, and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the UnitedStates, is asfollows:

1. The combination with a triple-valve-testing rack, of means forconnecting a triple valve thereto, comprising'a pair of valve-engagingmembers, intermediate lever connections mounted to move with respect tothe rack and connected to the said two valve-engaging members, formoving them to and from operative positions, on different portions ofthe valve, and an operating-lever applied to said connections for movingthem at will, substantially as described.

2. The combination with a triple-valve-testing rack, including anauxiliary reservoir, of a valve-clamping device comprising a clampengageable with a portion of the triple valve to press the same againstthe auxiliary reservoir, a nozzle engaging with the receivingneck ofsaid valve, amanually-operated crank, and lever connections from saidcrank to said clamp, and to said nozzle, arranged to react against thesaid clamp and nozzle, in drawing them to working positions on saidvalve, substantially as described.

3. The combination with a triple-valve-testing rack, comprising anauxiliary reservoir to which the triple valve is to be connected, of amanually-operated crankyieldingly supported, a spring-arm supporting anozzle for engagement with the neck of the triple valve, a clamping-barfor engagement with a flange connected to said clamping-bar, a crank-rodconnected to said intermediate lever and to said crank, a connectionbetween said crank and said nozzle-supporting arm, a cam-lug connectedto move with said crank, and lever connections to said clamping-barsubject to said cam-lug and arranged to lift said clamping-bar to andfrom an operative position, substantially as described. I

In testimony whereof I afiix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

ANDREW G. SANDBERG. Witnesses:

E. H. KELEHER, FRANK D. MERCHANT.

on said triple valve, an intermediate lever p

